Cocoa+5+Barriers


 * BARRIERS DISCUSSION**


 * Please list the results of your facilitated discussion on barriers and restraints to managing change and shift in schools.**
 * What is preventing them from being successful at implementing change?**

· 2 biggest barriers: new instructional methods are still tied to the traditional PSSA test. It is heavily in their mind when moving to PBL. We need a systemic change. If we use this, we need new assessments. The second is time. We don’t have staff meetings, department collaboration, and common planning time. It’s not that they don’t want to, it’s the time · Teachers cannot hit all of the standards. They like the structure of going from chapter 1 to chap. 2. They don’t see have to hit all the standards with PBL · Contract disputes. Union says you are not anything extra, no frills, A to Z. These teachers are not going to want to do anything extra. · I use PBL to teach 11th grade. Our tech guy will not open up websites and it is hindering technology and collaboration. Can’t use wiki, Google docs, or anything where kids can communicate with anything else outside their walls. They can communicate with teachers but not students. They cannot read blogs. · Same issues · Our teachers don’t know the difference between projects and PBL. The other issue is the time to plan collaboratively. We need teacher to know what PBL and more physical time to work together. · I team with teachers but in the HS, the teachers do not share. It is extremely different to get them to talk. We have the resources but changing their mentalities. They are in love with the content · A lot of teachers seems to lack the confidence for them integrate PBL. · Our teachers are very structured. I heard someone say that she only does one test in PBL. All other assessments are in different avenues. I wonder what my teachers would think of throwing away all the tests and quizzes. · Barrier of technology because we are so far behind. We are just starting to get Promethean and technology does not work all the time. Teachers become frustrated. Time is the other barrier with the demands of the PSSA putting on the teachers. · Commonly hear until we change the PSSA test and the common core, I can’t do PBL until we change the assessments. The other element is having teachers truly understand what PBL is and how it impacts the PSSA. · We give so much testing and I agree with the statement. I feel like a tech support person most of the time. Students saying “I can’t find this file or find this online”. You can’t be creative when trying to do those things · We are on school improvements and were told PBL is fun but we can’t do it this year. Students don’t see the instructional side of technology, not the fun side. · HS is a 7-12 school. All open computer labs are now classrooms. We do not have access to technology. The carts are not working and the lab is not open. Our curriculum director is jumping from one thing to the next and the teachers feel like this is just a phase. · Last year if we able to come to boot camp last year, things would be great. We had a lot of administrative changes and the teachers are not given the opportunities to work together and collaborate like they were previous. · I agree with testing, PBL. My district has been in administrative change and most of staff is teaching under 5 years. The whole district has changed. We are the coaches of 9 buildings. We have a great opportunity to make things happen but not enough bodies. We have the technology and willing to learn but not time. · We are reinvading the building and changing the platform in the district. Our environment is not innovative with all these changes. The momentum to get is going again is the biggest challenge. · My teachers are overwhelmed. Our administration said that LFS will be our initiative this year. I am not far enough to see how PBL fits into this model. · Just being a cohort 3 school and not getting equipment. I have only been at this for 2 years and I am still getting them to use the 21st century skills of collaborating. Now all of a sudden, but I know its building, now it is PBL. I want actual lesson and model lessons what you can do in your class and content areas. These are some concrete examples. It comes back to the superintendents wanting to know how it will raise test scores. That is something we never talk about. · Our district has the same problems but we have our own tech school part of our high school. This year, they are building a house and sell the house and that money will fund the program the next year. They have to take some tests in order to start to work. The building construction class has some of the highest math scores in the district. · We have a unique situation and time is our biggest factor. We have several 37 HS teachers, they know their content really well. Some of our senior teachers do not know or want to know how to use technology. How far do you push until you get push back? The attitude in our building is not matching up with any changes. · AYP status is what we are interested in and the district does not want do anything else. · I am a librarian and this is my first experience as CFF. I am hoping since I am here that there will be more involvement in CFF since I am here now.


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